Global Epidemiological Features of Human Monkeypox Cases and Their Associations With Social-Economic Level and International Travel Arrivals: A Systematic Review and Ecological Study

Abstract

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate global epidemiological features of human monkeypox (mpox) cases and their associations with social-economic level and international travel arrivals.Methods: We estimated the pooled value by random-effects models. Then, we conducted an ecological study to evaluate the relationship of confirmed cases with social-economic indices and international travel arrivals using correlation analyses.Results: The average age (2022: 35.52, 95% CI [28.09, 42.94] vs. before 2022: 18.38, 95% CI [14.74, 22.02]) and comorbidity rate (2022: 15.7%, 95% CI [8.9%, 22.4%] vs. before 2022: 14.9%, 95% CI [8.5%, 21.3%]) of mpox cases in the 2022 human mpox outbreak were significantly higher than those of cases before 2022. During the 2022 mpox outbreak, the proportion of men who have sex with men (MSM) was high (79.8%, 95% CI [65.5%, 94.2%]). The number of confirmed mpox cases in 2022 significantly correlated with high social-economic levels and international travel arrivals (all p < 0.05).Conclusion: Our findings highlighted the importance of early surveillance and timely detection in high-risk populations, including older people, MSM, and travelers, which is crucial to curb the wide transmission of mpox.